Hydrant



July 2s, .1925. A 1,547,248

H. P. WHEEIZER f HYDRANT med Feb. 1a, 1922 2 sheets-snm 2 ab@ l 1 iro/mrs Patented July 28, 1925.

UNITED STATES HERBERT P. WHEELER, 0F SPRINGFIELD, MISSOURI.

HYDRANT.

Application led February 18, 1922. Serial No. 537,563.

To all whom t may concern:

Be it known that I, HERBERT P. WHEELER, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Springfield, in the county of Greene and State of Missouri, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Hydrants, of which the following is a specication. Y

This invention is hydrant and relates particularly to that class designed for use as re-plugs or similar apparatus for controlling a flow of water under pressure from a common source of supply and directing it through any or all of several discharge passages. y

Among other objects my invention seeks to provide a hydrant having means for the application of apparatus designed to in crease the effective pressure at which the several streams may be discharged.

Another object of my invention is to provide a hydrant from which the flow of water through several discharge passages may be independently controlled.

Another object of the invention is to provide a hydrant with means for automatically draining its discharge chambers after use.

With these and other objects in view the invention consists of certain new and improved features of construction and combinations of parts which will be hereinafter described and claimed.

One embodiment of my invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, it being understood that I do not limit myself to the particular construction therein shown, but reserve the right to make such changes in materials and in details of construction as fairly fall within the scope of the appended claim.

l In the accompanying drawings in which like numerals designate like parts'throughout,

Figure 1 is a front elevation of the hydra-nt with the lower casing removed.

Figure 2 is a vertical sectional view of the hydrant and casing shown connected to a water main.

Figure 3 is a top plan view of the hydrant.

Figure 4 is a sectional view taken on the line 4-4 of Figure 2.

Figure 5 isa detail perspective lview ofV the central valve, withfgide attached.

Figure 6 is a detail perspective view of one of the cover plates.

Figure 7 isa detail perspective view of the upper valve stem guide. v

Figure 8 is a detail perspective view of one of the valve operating sleeves.

As shown in the accompanying drawings, the hydrant comprises a `body portion indicated generally by the numeral 1. The body 1is substantially elliptical in cross section as shown in Figures 3 and 4, and is provided with a centrally disposed chamber 2 and a plurality of out-- lying chambers 3 and 4,l all of said chambers being preferably cylindrical in form and having their centers located in the major axis of the ellipse. As shownin the drawings, the 4central chamber is preferably larger in diameter than the outlying chambers, for a purpose to be hereinafter explained.

A suitable casting 5 is shown detachably secured to the lower extremity of the body .1, saidl casting being substantially elliptical in cross section at its enlarged upper end 6 and circular in cross section at its lower extremity 7 said lower end being externally provided with screw threads 8. Interposed between the casting 5 and the body 1 and secured to the body by suitable bolts 9a is shown a plate 9, said plate being provided with a plurality of ports 10 designed to furnish communication between an enlarged interior chamber 11 of the casting 5, and the chambers 2, 3 and 4 of the body 1. The casting 5 is secured to the body 1'by means of suitable bolts 8a, extending through the lower flange of the body 1, the plate 9, and the flange of the casting 5. i

The ports 10 are preferably beveled on the lower side as shown at 12 to form seats accommodate a suitable packing 18a. The protub'erances 18 are interiorly threaded adjacent their upper edges as indicated at 25 to cooperate with a suitable packing gland 25@L whereby a substantially water tight joint may be made between the guide plate and valve stems.

The upper extremities of the valve stems are designed to terminate in enlarged threaded portions 19 and extend through a chamber 2O of a detachable head 21, said head being secured, with the guide plate 17, to the body 1 by means of suitable bolts 22. The head 21 is provided with apertures 23 respectively alined with the apertures 18 and within which are rotatably mounted sleeve members 24. rThe sleeve members 24 are preferably of the form shown in Eigure 8, being cylindrical and provided with an external annular 'shoulder 26, an axial threaded socket 27 and terminating in a polygonal head 28. The shoulder 26 is designed to engage a cooperating shoulder 29a formed on the inner wall of the apertures 23 and the sockets 27 to receive and threadedly engage the heads 192L of the stems, said sleeves being retained in operative 'position within the head 21, by suitable nuts 29a.

From the foregoing description it will become apparent that by the application Aof a suitable wrench to the polygonal heads 28 of the` sleeves 24, the valves 13 and 14 may be independently opened or closed to control the flow of water from the chamber-11 into the chambers 2, 3, and 4, and thence through suitable orifices 3() and 31 to hose lines or other apparatus attached thereto. lt will be understood that the central chamber 2 and its associated elements are made relatively larger than those of the chambers 3 and 4, to adapt it for use in connection with high pressure fire pumps and similar apparatus, whereby the pressure of the streams discharged from said apparatus may be substantially increased.

After the hydrant has been in use and the valves 13 and 14 closed, the chambers 2, 3 and 4 will retain a large amount of water on account of the relative positions of the orifices 30 and 31 and the ports 10 unless suitable provision is made for obviating this condition; also on account of the joint between the valve stems and the guide plate 17 a certain amount of water may possibly leak into the chamber 2O while the 'hydrant is in use. lli/hilo `ordinarily this would not give rise to any serious difliculties, it would be a likely cause of serious trouble in cold weather due to the possibility of the water freezing. To olt-viate thee dilliculties, the head 21 is provided with a drain duct 32, communicating with the lower portion of the chamber 2O and opening through the outer wall of the` hydrant, whereby any water leaking into said chamber around the valve stems will immediately drain therefrom. To provide similar means for draining the water entrapped in the chamber 2 a plurality of drain ducts 33 are provided in the wall of the body, said ducts providing communication between the chamber 2 and the exterior of the hydrant. To prevent the passa-i'e of water through the ducts 33 when the hydrant is in operation, a spider 34 is provided, said spider being mounted upon the -i stem 1G as shown in Figure 5, and being secured against longitudinal displacement by a nut 35 and Secured against rotary movement by a lrey 35u. The spider is provided with a plurality of radially projecting arms 36 designed to cooperate with suitable guide shoulders 37 positioned on the inner walls of the chamber 2 and extending longitudinally thereof. The ducts 33 are shown positioned between the guide shoulders 37 so that the extremities 38 of the arms will function as valves for the said ducts when the valve 14 is opened or closed. The spider 34 is positioned upon the valve stem 1G relatively to the ducts 33 so that said ducts are normally uncovered when the valve 14 is closed and covered by said spider arms when the valve 14 is open. Although only the valve stem 16 and the -chamber 2 have been shown provided with automatic draining means, it is'to be understood that similar elements may be employed in connection with the stems 15 and the chambers 3 and 4, if desired.

To adapt the hydrant as above described for ready application to a water main, lan outer casingl 39 may be provided, said casing being designed to encircle that vportion of the hydrant lying below the ysurface of the ground or pavement, and -vto have its reduced lower Vlxtremity 40 provided with external screw threads 41 whereby the casing may be attached to a water main 42 and internally threaded, whereby the casting 5 of the hydrant may be attached thereto. The casing 39 is preferably circular in cross section throughout its length and, due to the elliptical formation of the hydrant body, suitable shoulders 43 are provided to retain the hydrant in a concentric position within the casing. Due to said shoulders and to lower bolt flanges 44 of the hydrant, an annular air chamber 45 is provided between the casing and'hydrant which tends to insulate the hydrant in cold weather and to prevent it from freezing. A. plurality of closure plates 45 are provided to prevent the entrance of water and dbris into the chamber 45, said plates comprising `complementary sections (see Figure 6) -being preferably provided with suitable knobs or handles 47 to facilitate their removalin the event it is desiredto use the chamber 45,as

kaf

a storage space for a length of hose, a nozzle or other article.

From the foregoing description it will become apparent that a hydrant has been provided With means for independently controlling the flow of Water from its several discharge orifices and for automatically draining the Water from its discharge chambers after use.

Having thus described the inventien What is claimed as new is:

The combination With a hydrant, of a casing designed and arranged to enclose a portion of said hydrant in spaced relation 15 thereto, spacing means for maintaining the easing in spaced relation to the hydrant, said means including shoulders between the casing and the hydrant and adjacent the top of the casing, said casing and the enclosed portion of the hydrant defining a chamber, the upper end of the chamber being open to facilitate access to the interior thereof, and a readily removable flat cover plate made up of sections resting on the shoulders and closing the opening at the upper end of the chamber, said sections having knobs facilitating their removal, the chamber constituting an air insulating chamber and a storage space.

HERBERT P. WHEELER. 

